Skylab

Skylab was the first American space station, a roomy orbital workshop built from leftover Apollo Moon-program hardware. Three crews lived aboard it in 1973 and 1974, proving that astronauts could stay healthy and productive in space for months at a time.

Quick facts

• Launched: May 1973, by NASA, atop the last Saturn V rocket to fly.
• Crews: three, each of three astronauts, staying 28, 59, and 84 days.
• Built from: a converted upper stage of the Saturn rocket, turned into a workshop.
• Re-entered: 1979, scattering debris over the Indian Ocean and Western Australia.

A rough start

Skylab nearly failed at launch. Vibration tore off a shield meant to protect it from the Sun and micrometeoroids, and took one of its main solar panels with it, jamming another. The station arrived in orbit overheating and short on power. The first crew became space repairmen, rigging a sunshade through a small hatch and freeing the stuck panel during a daring spacewalk, saving the entire program in one of the first great in-space repair jobs.

Why it mattered

Once rescued, Skylab became a productive laboratory. Crews studied the Sun with a dedicated solar telescope, ran materials and biology experiments, and most importantly served as test subjects for how the human body adapts to long stays in weightlessness. The lessons learned, about exercise, nutrition, and bone and muscle loss, directly shaped how astronauts live aboard later stations like Mir and the ISS. Skylab showed that a space station could be a real home and workplace, not just a brief stop.